Summary

  • Final day of pre-season testing

  • Sebastian Vettel fastest in the morning

  • Vettel tests 'halo' head protection device

  • Transmission problem for Hamilton before lunch

  • Get involved #worsteverF1mods

  1. See you for Australiapublished at 17:15 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    Right, time for me to call it a day. 

    Forty hours of writing about F1 testing may sound like a lot, but the excellent memes and humour you've all provided have helped make it fly by.

    I can't wait to do it all again in two weeks time.

    Keep an eye on Andrew Benson's testing review online later and I'll be back for Australian Grand Prix practice on 18 March. Hopefully see you then.

  2. Postpublished at 17:12 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

  3. Day four final timespublished at 17:06 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    1 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1:22.852 

    2 Carlos Sainz (Spa) Toro Rosso 1:23.134 

    3 Felipe Massa (Brz) Williams 1:23.644 

     4 Sergio Perez (Mex) Force India 1:23.721 

    5 Lewis Hamilton (GB) Mercedes 1:24.133 

    6 Daniel Ricciardo (Rus) Red Bull 1:24.427 

    7 Jenson Button (GB) McLaren 1:24.714 

    8 Jolyon Palmer (GB) Renault 1:24.859 

    9 Marcus Ericsson (Swe) Sauber 1:25.031 

    10 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas 1:25.255 

    11 Esteban Gutierrez (Spa) Haas 1:25.422 

    12 Rio Haryanto (Idn) Manor 1:25.899 

    13 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes 1:26.140 

    Vettel, Massa, Perez, Palmer and Gutierrez set their best times on the super-soft tyre, Sainz, Button and Haryanto on the ultra-aoft, Ricciardo, Ericsson, and Grosjean on the soft and the Mercedes drivers on the medium

  4. Postpublished at 17:04 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    A cheeky improvement from Nico Rosberg at the end there with 1:26.140. It is not enough to move him off the bottom of the timesheet.

    Sebastian Vettel finishes the final day of the final test fastest.

  5. Postpublished at 17:01 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

  6. chequered flag

    Chequered flagpublished at 17:00 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    That's it. Testing is over for 2016.

    On to Australia...

  7. Five minutes to gopublished at 16:55 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    And now, the end is near...

    It looks like for the second day in a row it will be a Ferrari that will top the timesheet. 

  8. Postpublished at 16:49 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

  9. Postpublished at 16:49 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    Esteban Gutierrez climbs a pace into 11th as a run on the super softs produces a 1:25.422. 

    There's unlikely to be any drastic changes on the timesheet, Jenson Button has those ultras on but no improvement on his time set on the same compound earlier.

  10. Get involved #bbcf1published at 16:46 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    What have you learnt from testing?

  11. Postpublished at 16:39 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

  12. Postpublished at 16:38 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    Twenty minutes to go and Jenson Button is cracking on with an ultra soft tyre run. 

    He has Felipe Massa, Nico Rosberg, Carlos Sainz and Sebastian Vettel for company on the track.

  13. Get involved #bbcf1published at 16:25 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    Cheers Emily, we've had fun too. Although we may have to rein in our appreciation of the great man...

  14. Postpublished at 16:23 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    Jenson Button has been quietly going about his business on track. He's just completed his 60th lap of the afternoon - five short of race distance in Barcelona.

    Meanwhile, a personal best for the day from Esteban Gutierrez - 1:26.555. He's still 12th fastest.

  15. Postpublished at 16:15 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

  16. Get involved #bbcf1published at 16:13 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    What have you learnt from testing?

  17. Testing latestpublished at 16:06 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    1. Sebastian Vettel 1:22.852 121 laps

    2. Carlos Sainz 1:23.134 97 laps

    3. Felipe Massa 1:23.644 112 laps

    4. Sergio Perez 1:23.721 60 laps

    5. Lewis Hamilton 1:24.133 69 laps

    6. Daniel Ricciardo 1:24.427 110 laps

    7. Jenson Button 1:24.714 102 laps

    8. Jolyon Palmer 1:24.859 73 laps

    9. Marcus Ericsson 1:25.031 108 laps

    10. Romain Grosjean 1:25.255 66 laps

    11. Rio Haryanto 1:25.899 45 laps

    12. Esteban Gutierrez 1:26.899 5 laps

    13. Nico Rosberg 1:28.165 29 laps

  18. Postpublished at 16:03 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    Nico Rosberg is on the slide again. 

    Esteban Gutierrez is swiftly on board with a timed lap - a 1:26.899 - and that puts him 12th on the timesheet, ahead of the Mercedes driver.

  19. Get involved #bbcf1published at 16:01 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    Yes Andy! Top work.

  20. 'A little disastrous'published at 15:58 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2016

    Andrew Benson
    Chief F1 writer

    Britain’s newest F1 driver, Jolyon Palmer has not had the easiest of pre-seasons. He has done about two-fifths of the mileage of team-mate Kevin Magnussen in the Renault as a result of reliability problems. This, he said, had been “a little bit disastrous to be honest” and “it is obviously not what you want when you are a rookie trying to turn up in Melbourne and do a good job”. 

    However, it’s not all bad news. Palmer says the “base-line car is reasonable” and “at least I have the experience from last year to fall back on”, when he was Lotus’s reserve driver and ran in several practice sessions. 

    “If we can work on a bit more this afternoon I am quite confident to turn up to Melbourne and it will be alright.” Palmer has added more than 30 laps to his tally already since lunch, so it’s not looking too bad.